Republican Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has accused James Talarico, his opponent in the Texas Senate race, of deep, rampant corruption.
“James Talarico abused his office to enrich himself and his employer,” Paxton wrote on X this Thursday. “He needs to answer for his corruption and explain to taxpayers why he used their tax dollars to benefit himself and the woke DEI firm paying him tens of thousands of dollars.”
Attached to the tweet was a bombshell Fox News report documenting the corruption allegations in detail.
BREAKING: James Talarico abused his office to enrich himself and his employer. He needs to answer for his corruption and explain to taxpayers why he used their tax dollars to benefit himself and the woke DEI firm paying him tens of thousands of dollars. https://t.co/TdX67eCec1
— Attorney General Ken Paxton (@KenPaxtonTX) September 17, 2026
The report from Fox News focused on Talarico’s past consulting work from 2019 to 2025 for MAYA Consulting, now known as VIDA Collaborative. The work occurred during Talarico’s time on the Texas House Public Education Committee, which reportedly oversees the Texas Education Agency (TEA).
Here’s the key: During Talarico’s tenure on the Texas House Public Education Committee, MAYA received millions in contracts from the TEA.
“[TEA] awarded MAYA two contracts worth $3.578 million and $1.635 million, respectively,” according to Fox News. “The contracts were related to priorities Talarico was pushing in the Texas House at the time, including addressing learning loss due to COVID-19.”
Meanwhile, as MAYA was collecting money from TEA, Talarico was busy collecting $83,333.40 from the nonprofit in 2025, as well as $13,904.92 from his position as a Texas state House representative.
MAYA has been accused of being a woke, DEI-obsessed nonprofit:
Just when you think you know a guy… James Talarico Worked As ‘Equitable Education’ Consultant at Left-Wing Firm Developing DEI Plans for Texas School Districts
“Texas Senate candidate James Talarico (D.) earned tens of thousands of dollars working as an “equitable education”… pic.twitter.com/yt8ROBuSOh
— Steve Guest (@SteveGuest) June 11, 2026
Kassi Longoria, the CEO of the now-rebranded VIDA Collaborative, seemed to deny any wrongdoing by Talarico.
“During his time at VIDA, his consulting work was structured, specifically to remain separate from his role as a Texas state legislator,” she alleged to Fox News.
She further stated that he “never worked under, received compensation from, or was involved in securing any state- or federally-funded contracts.”
“As a matter of standard practice, VIDA discloses any outside employment or potential conflicts of interest for our staff — including Rep. Talarico’s legislative role — in our proposals when we apply for publicly-funded opportunities,” she continued.
“Similarly, Rep. Talarico’s relationship with VIDA was disclosed in his required public financial disclosure filings,” she added.
However, Republican National Committee spokesperson Zach Kraft didn’t appear to believe her. Speaking with Fox News, he called Talarico’s involvement with MAYA an example of “blatant corruption.”
“We are looking at a textbook pay-to-play scheme with James Talarico steering millions in taxpayer funds to his DEI consulting agency under the condition he gets commission through a scam no-show job,” he said.
Kraft also accused Talarico of being “one of the most morally bankrupt individuals to ever run for public office in Texas.”
Asked for comment, a Talarico campaign spokesperson pushed back hard.
“This is a lie,” spokesperson JT Ennis said. “James’ relationship to MAYA was fully disclosed in compliance with Texas House rules. James had no involvement in MAYA Consulting securing any public contracts and his contract with MAYA barred him from representing MAYA before the Texas Legislature or education agencies.”
“Ken Paxton is making up lies about James to distract from the fact that he’s been impeached by his own party for bribery, reported to the FBI by his own staff, and indicted for investment fraud for scamming his own friends,” Ennis added.
Ennis went on to accuse Paxton of being “the most corrupt politician in Texas.”
“This November, Republicans, Democrats, and independents will come together to reject Ken Paxton’s corruption and stand up to this broken, corrupt political system,” he said.
Madison Cercy, a spokeswoman for Paxton’s campaign, disagreed.
“It couldn’t be clearer: James Talarico sees Texans’ tax dollars as his own personal slush fund,” she said.
Writers and editors can be contacted at [email protected] with feedback, tips, or corrections.
V. Saxena is a staff writer with a decade of experience as a professional writer, and a lifetime of experience as an avid news junkie. He holds a degree in computer technology from Purdue University. Saxena also contributes to BizPac Review.
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